


Touch

by Mycaruba



Category: Game Grumps
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-11-06
Updated: 2015-11-06
Packaged: 2018-04-30 09:16:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,776
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5158394
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mycaruba/pseuds/Mycaruba
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Dan takes some time for himself but realizes he misses Arin a little bit too much.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Touch

_D: Miss you, Big Cat._ 8:17 PM

 

_A: Miss you too, buddy._ 8:31 PM

 

Dan bit back a frown as he read the text he'd received from Arin. He wasn't sure what irked him about it; shaking his head a little, he shut off his phone and slid further underneath his duvet. Arin and Suzy were on another vacation in Japan for two weeks with Barry. Dan had wanted to go but ultimately declined as he needed to catch up on NSP stuff with Brian and take a few days for himself. Everyone's schedule had been a little bit hectic lately, and Dan understood his friends' desire to get away from it all. He found the idea of travel exhausting at the moment, so he decided to just take it easy and treat himself to a few nights of blissful solitude. After just a few days however, he'd found himself getting antsy with all this extra free time and no one to spend it with. Ross and Holly were gearing up for a major gaming con where they'd both be cosplaying, so spending time with them wasn't really an option. He had already hooked up with a lady friend, but she had scurried away immediately after, citing the fact that she was  _sooo busy danny but i'll call you babe._ He snorted, wondering if he'd ever hear from her again now that she got what she wanted from him. He was honestly just kind of...lonely. And maybe it was because of this feeling that Arin had been on his mind since he'd left. Particularly the way Arin was so affectionate with him, always playfully petting him or ruffling his mane. It made him ache a little bit every time he thought about it, and he wasn't quite sure what that meant.

 

He had texted Arin hoping to start a conversation about something innocuous and then eventually get around to telling him how he felt, but the urge felt stupid now. Arin was probably having the time of his life with his wife and one of his best friends, and Danny didn't want to whine about nothing and bring him down. Arin would just tell him to come down to Japan and join them. Dan smiled. That did seem like a nice idea, although the idea of being cramped as hell on a plane for so long was a strong deterrent. He let his mind wander and thought of the strong hug Arin would pull him into once he arrived, and how it just might make the whole awful plane ride worth it. Arin was such a physically affectionate person, but he had really ramped it up over the last few weeks. Grabbing onto Dan's arm during a tense boss battle and lingering on his swelling bicep for a little too long. Pulling him into a tight hug at the end of a long but satisfying day of recording. Leaning his head on Dan's shoulder and keeping it there when they were both on the edge of exhaustion. Danny's eyes opened just slightly. He realized now, thinking on it, that Arin only touched one other person as much as he touched Dan, and that was Suzy.

 

Dan felt a slight chill run through him as he considered the implications of this fact. On the other hand, Arin probably spent more time with Dan than anyone else because of their long recording sessions, but still... Dan shook his head; it was honestly too hard to tell with Arin. If his touchy nature with Dan did indicate something beyond platonic feelings, he masked it with jokey innuendos that sometimes left Danny wondering if he was overcompensating. In any case, Dan was beginning to miss Arin's affectionate gestures. He did the usual song and dance about how annoying it was, how weird Arin was for ruffling Dan's hair for no reason or grabbing his hand to pull him somewhere when he got excited, but if he was being honest, he liked it. He enjoyed being the center of Arin's attention for those few brief moments; it energized him and made him feel weirdly giddy, seeing that charming smile on Arin's face meant only for him. He knew Arin loved him, that he wasn't afraid to genuinely love another guy like a lot of his male friends, and it was really refreshing. What exactly the nature of that love was remained a bit murky, and the fact that Dan was actually missing the touch of another guy didn't help clear matters up. He sighed, wondering if he should bother Arin with this or leave him be and talk to him in person once he got back. He lay back and let his mind wander freely, only to be met with a barrage of images involving Arin. Arin smiling handsomely, Arin wrapping him in a tight hug and wrapping his thick arms around him, Arin rubbing his shoulders sweetly.  _Woah._ Dan felt a tingling heat creep up to his cheeks as these images played before his eyes. Dan felt a little odd that he was basically fantasizing about a guy but was also weirdly entranced by these thoughts; he nearly jumped out of his skin when his text tone went off. He shook his head to clear it and checked the phone. 

 

_A: Can I talk to you about something kind of weird and personal? 8:47 PM_

 

Dan raised an eyebrow. What were the fucking odds Arin was thinking about the same things he was?

 

_D: Sure man, what's up? 8:48 PM_

 

_A: Ok, so, I really miss you. More than it feels like I should, considering we're just friends? Like yesterday, there were half a dozen times I saw something that you'd like and I turned to you to show you, only you weren't there. And it made me feel kind of sad and like, hollow. To think of you not being here with me when I know you'd love it. Suzy noticed, and I tried to play it off, you know, like it didn't matter, but honestly, dude, I wish you were with me. I miss you not being with me. And I've been thinking about that feeling a lot today, and I feel off and distracted and confused, and I'm not saying that I have, like, romantic feelings for you, but I've never felt as strongly about anyone except Suzy as I do about you. I just want you with me, like, all the time. I don't want to sound selfish and clingy, but it's what I feel, and if you don't, or if this makes no sense to you, it's fine. I just want to be open with you, Dan. 8:56 PM_

 

Dan felt relief wash over him as he read the text over twice. Of course Arin felt the same; the two had gotten so close it was like they were telepathically linked sometimes. Dan chewed his lip as he thought of the right words to say; after a few minutes of trying to compose the perfect text, one that was heartfelt and honest, he shook his head and deleted it. He needed to talk to Arin about this. He dialed Arin's number and felt his heart drop as it went to voicemail. He took a deep breath as he left a message.

 

“Hey, man, it's Danny. Um...I didn't want to leave this in your voicemail, but I guess you're busy, so...yeah, dude, I, I do feel the same way. I've been, like, missing you? I miss the way you...fuck, I miss the way you touch me. I know how gay that sounds, but it's been so weird, you not being here to tease me and grab me over every little thing, and I miss you. I need you. I don't know why I feel this way, or what it _means_ , and it's sort of confusing but mostly it just seems like something I can't fight, and it's scary but also exciting, and I just wish you were there so I didn't feel like I was talking to thin air. Call me back, please.”

 

Dan huffed and roughly ran his hands through his hair. This was a weird enough thing for him to come to terms with; why did it all have to happen when they were thousands of miles away from each other? His phone rang a few minutes later, and his heart clenched as he picked up and saw Arin's name.

 

“Hey, man,” Dan said in a small voice.

 

“Hey, Dan, I'm sorry, I didn't hear my phone go off, I swear.”

 

“It's okay.”

 

“I, uh, heard your message.” A tremendously tense pause ensued as neither of them knew quite what to say or where to start. Dan was relieved when Arin took hold of the conversation.

“So, I know that you're scared and confused. I am too, a little bit. Like what does this mean for us, in terms of...our relationship? Is this just a really deep friendship, or do we want something more? How far are we both willing to go? Would it change things?”

 

Dan felt good about the fact that he wasn't the only one who didn't know what the hell he was doing.

 

“I don't know...I can't answer any of those questions, Arin. I think it's something we have to figure out with each other.”

 

“Is that okay? You're not, like, scared of what that means?”

 

“I mean, I am, but...” Dan let out a small sigh. “Whatever, I'm not gonna let it prevent me from...maybe doing something that will make me really happy.”

 

Dan could hear the pride in Arin's voice when he finally answered. “Good. I was really afraid I'd be alone in this.”

 

“I would never just put this all on you, Arin. We're in this together.”

 

“ _We're all in this together..._ ” Arin sung suddenly and off-key.

 

“Are you fucking...are you singing a high school musical song right now?”

 

“Yeah, and I'm kind of amazed that you knew what that was,” Arin said before dissolving into giggles. Dan smiled as he felt a warm tenderness radiate out to his entire body. Dan chewed his lip and went for it.

 

“I love you, man.” The weight of these words after their confessions was not lost on Arin as he responded in a thick voice, “I love you too, Dan.”

 

The two men shared a warm moment before Arin broke the silence. “So you want to come join us in Japan?”

 

Dan grinned before asking “Do you think it'd be weird if we shared a bed?”

 


End file.
